FOX has renewed MasterChef Junior for a fourth season. The second season was up about 20% when compared to the first cycle. The third season got off to a good start last week.
In addition, it’s been announced that expert pastry chef Christina Tosi will replace departing judge Joe Bastianich on both MasterChef and MasterChef Junior.
Here’s the press release:
FOX ORDERS UP A FOURTH SEASON OF “MASTERCHEF JUNIOR” AND WELCOMES RENOWNED PASTRY CHEF CHRISTINA TOSI TO “MASTERCHEF” AND “MASTERCHEF JUNIOR” JUDGING PANELS
All-New Episode of MASTERCHEF JUNIOR Airs Tonight on FOXFox Broadcasting Company (FOX) has ordered a fourth season of the hit cooking competition series MASTERCHEF JUNIOR. Additionally, Christina Tosi, renowned pastry chef, owner and founder of New York City’s Milk Bar, will join award-winning chef Gordon Ramsay and acclaimed chef Graham Elliot on both the MASTERCHEF and MASTERCHEF JUNIOR judging panels.
“MASTERCHEF has been one of my favorite shows since it began, and like so many others, I fell in love with MASTERCHEF JUNIOR,” said Tosi. “I’m incredibly humbled by the opportunity and excited to pay forward all that I owe to learning what you’re made of in the home kitchen, and putting your neck on the line to show what you’ve got to the rest of the world!”
“Christina is one of the most exciting, dynamic and inspirational people in food today, whose brilliant ideas and incredible work ethic have resulted in a meteoric rise in the culinary world,” added Ramsay. “I have tremendous respect for her opinions, and she’ll be an incredible judge and phenomenal mentor to the best home cooks in America.”
Season Six of MASTERCHEF is currently in production and will air this summer. Production on Season Four of MASTERCHEF JUNIOR will begin this spring.
MASTERCHEF JUNIOR is television’s No. 1 cooking show among Adults 18-49 and Total Viewers, currently averaging 6.0 million total viewers. The Season Three premiere of MASTERCHEF JUNIOR bowed to +6% increase from its Season Two finale. The MASTERCHEF franchise has been nominated for two People’s Choice Awards, two Critics’ Choice Television Awards, one TEEN CHOICE Award and won the 2013 Emmy Award for Outstanding Art Direction for a Multi-Camera Series.
Christina Tosi is the chef, owner and founder of Milk Bar, the New York City-based dessert branch of the Momofuku restaurant group. The creator of popular items, including cereal milk(TM) ice cream, compost cookies(R) and crack pie(R), Tosi got her start helping Momofuku Ko earn two stars from the Michelin Guide and Momofuku Ss�m jump onto Restaurant magazine’s Top 100 Restaurants in the World list. She is the 2012 recipient of the James Beard Rising Star Chef Award and a finalist for the 2014 James Beard Outstanding Pastry Chef Award. There are six Milk Bar locations in New York and one in Toronto, with another opening in Washington, D.C. this year. Tosi also teaches classes at her Williamsburg production kitchen and has her own line of baking mixes, as well as a charitable line of “fashionably wholesome” cookies with Karlie Kloss, called Karlie’s Kookies(TM).
In tonight’s all-new episode, “Easy As Pie,” airing 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT on FOX, three of the junior home cooks will face a sweet competition as they race to top all of their pies with whipped meringue. The winner of the challenge will not only get a major advantage in the next challenge, but also will help the judges get a slice of victory. After a fun and messy competition, the judges task the kids with their first team competition, during which each pair must create their own sausage dishes.
MASTERCHEF and MASTERCHEF JUNIOR are produced by Endemol Shine North America and One Potato Two Potato, and are based on a format created by Franc Roddam and Endemol Shine. Elisabeth Murdoch, Eden Gaha, Paul Franklin, Robin Ashbrook, Gordon Ramsay, Adeline Ramage Rooney, Patricia Llewellyn and Ben Adler serve as executive producers.
“Like” MASTERCHEF on Facebook at facebook.com/MasterChef. Follow the series on Twitter @MASTERCHEFonFOX and join the discussion at #masterchef. “Like” MASTERCHEF JUNIOR on Facebook at facebook.com/MasterChefJuniorFOX. Follow the series on Twitter @MasterChefJrFOX and join the discussion at #masterchefjunior. Follow the judges on Twitter: Gordon Ramsay – @gordonramsay; Graham Elliot – @grahamelliot; Christina Tosi – @christinatosi.
About One Potato Two Potato
Renowned for award-winning original programming, One Potato Two Potato produces high-quality TV shows on both sides of the Atlantic, including the smash-hit HOTEL HELL, the blockbuster MASTERCHEF and irresistible spin-off MASTERCHEF JUNIOR, all for FOX; “Best New Restaurant,” a major new cable series premiering in January; competition series “Food Court Wars”; as well as “Gordon Ramsay Behind Bars” and “Gordon Ramsay’s Great Escape,” for Channel 4 in the U.K.; and “My Kitchen,” for UKTV’s Good Food Channel. OPTP has also produced two instructional cookery series featuring Gordon Ramsay, “Ultimate Home Cooking” and “Ultimate Cookery Course,” both of which have sold all over the globe.
About Endemol Shine North America
Endemol Shine North America is part of Endemol Shine Group, the newly launched global content creator, producer and distributor with a diverse portfolio of companies in the U.S. that create some of the most prominent hit television formats and series in the world, including AMERICAN IDOL (FOX), “Below Deck” (Bravo), “Big Brother” (CBS), “The Biggest Loser” (NBC), “Hell on Wheels” (AMC), “Ink Master” (Spike), “It Takes a Church” (GSN), “Kingdom” (DirecTV), “Knife Fight” (Esquire), “Man v. Food” (Travel), MASTERCHEF (FOX), MASTERCHEF JUNIOR (FOX), “Swamp People” (History), “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” (Bravo), SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (FOX), “Steve Harvey” (NBCU),”T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle” (VH1), “Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge” (CMT), “Wipeout” (ABC) and many more. Cris Abrego and Charlie Corwin are co-chairmen and co-CEOs of Endemol Shine North America. The global media powerhouse has creative operations in over 30 markets and a diverse portfolio of over 600 revenue-generating formats across scripted and non-scripted genres, with digital, gaming and distribution operations. Endemol Shine North America delivers world-class content and compelling storytelling to platforms in the U.S. and across the globe.
What do you think? Do you like MasterChef Junior? Is it as good as or better than the adult version?
The most delightful of all the cooking shows! These kids are stupendous, and time isn’t wasted on showcasing nastiness.
Season 2 was the first time we watched this show. We are fans of Gordon Ramsey. We will continue to watch as long as Fox runs its.